Archive for April, 2009

The Grabill Cabinet Company

Making Green a way of life

Grabill Cabinets available at Urban Homes, Inc.

Grabill Cabinets available at Urban Homes, Inc.

 

More than ever before, we must each consider the effects of our choices on the environment. Every day confronts us with opportunities to reduce, reuse, and recycle if we would only accept the challenge.

The Grabill Cabinet Company has embraced this opportunity to “live green” in our pursuit of creating the finest custom cabinetry. Careful consideration of our materials, processes, and facilities has presented exciting ways to save energy, reuse materials, and recycle used materials.
Located in an Amish region, we are already accustomed to thinking about how we influence the community around us. Now we have an opportunity to help our customers make a positive impact on their communities.

-Tim Harvey, Marketing Director
The Grabill Cabinet Company

Because of our high standards for quality, many of our materials and processes already meet the demands of environmentally conscious customers:
  • Received the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association’s Environmental Stewardship Program certification. As part of the certification, we met requirements in areas of air quality, product and process resource management, environmental stewardship, and community relations.

  • The particle board, MDF, and plywood cores that make up our cabinet case adhere to strict formaldehyde emissions standards with much of our inventory using a formaldehyde-free system called PureBond from Columbia Forest Products.
  • Local farmers benefit from wood shavings and sawdust created from scrap wood.
  • Not content to purchase wood components from outside suppliers, we operate our own lumber mill, taking advantage of optimizing saws that transform every bit of raw material possible into usable components.
Our Green Team meets monthly look evaluate our progress and identify new opportunities for improvement. We see going green as a journey, not a destination. We are taking steps now to ensure that future generations won’t regret the choices we made:
  • Digital filing systems have replaced much of our paper files and electronic collaboration tools reduce our paper use.
  • Invoices are delivered electronically whenever possible.
  • Recycling aluminum, paper, and cardboard
  • Lighting fixtures in our production facility are being evaluated for transition to highly efficient fluorescent versions
  • When not occupied, we shut off lighting and dust collection in sections of our facility.
  • Disposable items like paper cups, silverware, and bottled water are being phased out in favor of reusable items.
  • Lights in unoccupied offices or areas are shut off.
  • Automated thermostats reduce energy usage by changing facility temperatures when not occupied.

www.grabillcabinets.com are exclusively available at Urban Homes, Inc. www.uhny.com

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Aster Cucine – 2280 Fredrick Douglass Blvd., NYC

 

Kitchens by Aster Cucine

Kitchens by Aster Cucine

 

 

Welcome To 2280 Frederick Douglass Boulevard Upscale, Uptown! 2280 FDB has raised the standard for quality of construction, materials, appliances and finishes to a new, higher level, not only in Harlem, but for any of the new buildings in its category. The kitchens include Aster Cucine custom cabinetry, seamless CesarStone countertops, framed glass upper cabinets, Blanco sinks and Dornbracht fixtures, Miele dishwashers, Sub Zero refrigerator-freezer and Wolf range, or the Electrolux Icon Series. The baths incorporate such stand out features as Grigio Luna stone tile imported from Italy paired with a glass mosaic accent tile. Custom wood vanities from Lacava and generous tubs and showers. From the 12th floor communal roof terrace with an outdoor fireplace and an additional terrace garden off the main floor, to its on-site parking, 2280 FDB has the amenities that matter

Location: 2280 Frederick Douglass btwn West 122nd/123rd Streets
Size: 12 floors, 89 units
Prices: $365,000 to $1,889,000
Architect: GF55 Partners
Developer: RGS Holdings
Sales & Marketing: Halstead Property
There’s been some chatter regarding whether or not the Harlem market has flattened out or just curled up and died, so it’s perhaps not the best time to bring a brand new Harlem development to market. Still, we can’t help but have a thing for 2280 FDB. It looks like it’s trying to imitate an old Park Avenue co-op (not a bad thing), the pricing is not absurd, it has a vital 25-year 421-a tax abatement, the finishes have some classy touches (Sub-Zero and Miele make cameos), amenities include on-site parking and the whole boulevard is undergoing a social experiment of sorts (Starbucks and Aloft and many many more apartments TK). The units are cozy at 458-1,641 square feet, but you can always stretch your legs at nearby Morningside Park or on the communal roof deck. A slam dunk in the pre-panic era, but will Harlem take to her now?

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